Advisory question

Ballot Basics Amendments Citizen initiatives Indirect initiative Legislative referrals Statutes Citizen initiatives Indirect initiative Legislative referrals Advisory question Automatic ballot referral Bond issue Combined Commission referred Recall Veto referendum

An Advisory Question is a type of ballot measure in which citizens vote on a non-binding question. The largest difference between an advisory vote and any other type of ballot measure is that the outcome of the ballot question will not result in a new, changed, or rejected law or constitutional amendment. Rather, the advisory question symbolically makes heard the general opinion of the voting population in regard to the issue at hand.

Advisory questions are most commonly used at the local level, often to voice the opinions of region to higher levels of government. At the state level, while uncommon, advisory questions are generally placed on the ballot by the state legislature to assess public opinion. However, advisory questions can also be placed on the ballot by petition in some regions.

Terminology

Advisory questions may be confusing to some voters because they can come under a variety of names. For instance, in Wisconsin advisory questions have been called referendums, while in Florida they were once call straw polls. Even more confusing is that advisory questions are not always labeled at all.

Examples

Some examples of state level advisory questions:

• Massachusetts Candidate Television and Radio Time Advisory, Question 6 (1990)
• Nevada Day Advisory, Question 4 (1998)
• Florida Federal Budget Advisory Question (2010)

Some examples of local level advisory questions:

• Longview City Red Light Camera Advisory Question (November 2011)
• Wheaton Grand Theatre Public Funding Advisory Question (April 2011)
• Dane County Marijuana Advisory Question (November 2010)

Other types of ballot measures

Other types of ballot measures that appear in multiple states are:

advisory question automatic ballot referral legislatively-referred bond question combined initiated constitutional amendment and state statute

commission referral indirect initiated constitutional amendment indirect initiated state statute initiated constitutional amendment

initiated state statute legislatively-referred constitutional amendment legislatively-referred state statute veto referendum

Some related terms:

ballot measure Constitutional convention

Indirect initiative Legislative referral

See also

• Forms of direct democracy in the American states